It is known that hard water ions, specifically calcium and magnesium, adversely affect the activity of soaps and detergents. These ions deactivate detergents and can form undesirable precipitates. Thus, it is desirable to remove these ions to avoid reaction with the detergent. One way to do this is to soften the water prior to introduction into a washing machine. In many parts of the world, this is impractical or impossible, but in most parts of the world it is expensive. Another approach is to remove hard water ions by reaction with another material in situ in the washer. Materials useful for removing hard water ions include alkali silicates (non-crystalline silicates, crystalline silicates and zeolites), particularly hydrated layered alkali silicates.
Layered alkali silicates are materials chemically comprising SiO.sub.2 organized into layers (sheets) having a negative charge, with alkali cations for charge compensation and, in some cases, water between the layers (these materials are known as ELS). Hydrated layered sodium silicates have been known for a number of years, either synthetically produced or naturally occurring (McCulloch J. Am. Chem. Soc. 75, 2453 (1952)). The SiO.sub.2 /Na.sub.2 O ratios of these silicates range from 4 to 20. The first synthetic hydrated layered silicate, having a SiO.sub.2 /Na.sub.2 O ratio of 4, was reported by Wills in 1953 (U.S. Pat. No. 2,640,756). This synthetic hydrated layered silicate was claimed to be useful as an ion exchange material, specifically for calcium. However, the structure of the synthetic hydrated layered silicate prepared by Wills was not disclosed. In 1972, a naturally occurring tetrasilicate (SiO.sub.2 /Na.sub.2 O=4) was reported by Johan and Maglione (Johan and Maglione, Bull. Soc. Fr. Mineral. Crystallogr. 95, 371 (1972)). The structure of this material was identified as a hydrated layered silicate, and the name kanemite was given to this mineral. In The Chemistry of Silica 1979 and J. Colloid Sci 19, 7, 648 (1964), Iler concluded from the results of Johan and Maglione that the synthetic hydrated layered silicate claimed by Wills in 1953 was kanemite. Furthermore, Iler reported that crystalline hydrated layered alkali silicates have the ability to ion exchange their sodium ions and protons with other metal ions or organic ions. Iler's observations are consistent with Wills' experimental findings on the calcium ion exchange ability of kanemite materials. The synthesis of kanemite has also been reviewed by Beneke and Lagaly (Beneke and Lagaly, Amer. Mineral. 62, 763 (1977)).
In recent years the use of crystalline layered sodium silicates, especially crystalline sodium disilicates, as detergent builders has been suggested (see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,585,642; 4,806,327; 4,950,310; 4,820,439; 4,664,839; and 4,959,170). These crystalline sodium disilicates were synthesized and reported as early as 1966 (Williamson and Glasser, Physics and Chemistry of Glasses, Vol. 7, No. 4, August, 1966). While these patents claim that crystalline sodium disilicates function when incorporated into detergents, the disclosed crystalline layered silicates have not been accepted readily by the worldwide detergent industry due to their poor ability to remove hardness ions from wash water at temperatures below about 30.degree. C.
Furthermore, there are circumstances where it may be necessary or desirable to remove only one hardness ion or the other (Ca.sup.2+ or Mg.sup.2+). Some detergent formulations have been developed which work synergistically with one hardness ion. Accordingly, it may be undesirable to remove that ion, or it may be desirable to reduce it to a particular concentration to optimize detergent performance while removing the other ion. Finally, where only one ion is present in water of a particular geographic region, it is only that ion (either calcium or magnesium) which can be removed from the wash water. In the past, tailoring builder materials to selectively sequester hardness ions was difficult or impossible.
It is an object of this invention to provide a composite material comprising a hydrated layered alkali silicate, including both sodium and potassium, and an amorphous alkali silicate, including both sodium and potassium, that is more suitable as a detergent ingredient than previously suggested materials that it would replace. A further object of this invention is to provide a detergent composition that includes a hydrated layered alkali silicate/amorphous alkali silicate composite that reduces the activity of hardness ions in the wash water without producing the detrimental precipitates of these ions produced by some other detergent additives including sodium carbonate. It is a still further object of this invention to provide the chemistry and the processing necessary to tailor the detergent builder and ion sequestering properties of these hydrated layered alkali silicate/amorphous alkali silicate composite materials.